A secretary who sued her former employer after she was harassed by four female colleagues has been awarded £817,000 damages from the firm; in this employment law briefing, Chris Syder Head of Employment for Clarkslegal LLP looks at how to avoid costly tribunal claims.
A High Court judge ruled that investment firm Deutsche Bank failed to protect her from ‘spiteful’ colleagues. The secretary who earned £45,000 a year at the London bank, said their mocking and offensive remarks were responsible for her two nervous breakdowns and depression.
She told the court: “This was not playful, it was malicious. It was vicious.”
The judge, Mr Justice Owen, said bullying in the department was a longstanding problem, after other women told the court that they had been subjected to similar treatment. He described the ordeal as a “deliberate and concerted campaign of bullying” and said the bank’s management was “weak and ineffectual”. A spokeswoman for the firm said: “Deutsche Bank respects the judgment of the court.”
The results from Peninsula’s survey indicate that 81 per cent of employees had been bullied at work and 74 per cent would not complain to their boss if they were being harassed. When asked if their boss would take a complaint seriously, 77 per cent said ‘no’.
“Bullying can exist in a variety of forms, ranging from physical to psychological abuse, for example from sending offensive emails and shouting insults to setting impossible work load deadlines.”
Discrimination against an individual regarding ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, trade union membership, disability or religion is strictly forbidden and can be brought before a tribunal.
But companies also need to be aware that following the law lords’ decision in the Majrowski case last month, cases of general bullying can be brought under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. These cases can be brought before the high court.
Done added: “In order to deal with bullying appropriately, you need to have an equal opportunities policy which is also reflected through contracts of employment.
“An environment of honesty should be created where employees are encouraged to inform their superiors of any issues that arise.
“If such rules are broken then bosses should talk to the individual or individuals concerned to gain an insight into the extent of the problem and how best to solve it. But if it becomes a persistent problem then appropriate action should be taken.
“Bullying is a grave issue in the modern business world, which can have a substantial effect upon work place productivity and relationships.”
Bullying is the use of a position of power to coerce others by fear, persecution, threat or force. It can range from extreme forms of violence and intimidation, swearing and shouting and humiliating the victim in front of others to the less obvious, for example sending someone to Coventry. Where a group of employees subject another to harmful treatment or puts pressure on an employee with the intention of inducing him or her to leave, this is called “mobbing.”
Recommendations for dealing with bullying include mechanisms for victims to report bullying without fear of retribution, effective complaints procedures, training and the use of stress audits to avoid work environments that are contributing to bullying.
There is no legislation in the UK specifically to protect employees suffering bullying at work. If the bullying amounts to harassment on the grounds of sex, sexual orientation, race, religion or disability anti-discriminatory legislation will apply. But, if not, the victim will have to seek protection and redress from elsewhere in the law.
It is always best to deal with bullying at work informally and quickly. This saves both time and money and provides the opportunity to resolve issues before working relationships are damaged irretrievably. All employees need to ensure that they have a policy for dealing with bullying.
This must describe what is regarded as acceptable and unacceptable behaviour and make it clear that all employees are entitled to be treated with respect and dignity. A procedure should be in place to enable victims to report incidents of bullying and for these to be fully investigated. Witnesses as well as victims should be encouraged to come forward without fear of repercussion.
There is little point in having policies and procedures in place if your employees are unaware of them and do not know how to put them into practice. The policy should therefore be circulated to all employees, either by including it in the staff handbook, pinning it on the notice board or putting it on the company’s intranet.
Training should be given to the entire workforce and this should cover the outline of the policy and procedures, what constitutes bullying, how to deal with instances where colleagues behave badly and what guidance and support is available to those who believe they are being bullied. Line managers need particular training as they are often in the best place to spot signs of bullying.
They therefore need to recognise when relationships within their team are becoming strained and how to deal with any conflict that may arise.
Failure to deal with bullying at work could lead to claims for breach of contract, unfair constructive dismissal, personal injury and discrimination/harassment. These claims can be expensive and time consuming but can be easily avoided if proper procedures and training are in place.
Chris Syder, Head of Employment (London) can be contacted at csyder@clarkslegal.com
